Here are a couple photos from the 1979 Senior League All-Star game at McGibbeny Field in Brookline. The photos capture not only the team members (listed below), but also many of the characters that made the Brookline Little League experience a special one for many of us late-term baby boomers.

The photos above and below show the team heading towards the dugout for the beginning of the contest after, no doubt, an inspirational pre-game speech by coaches George Kinzel and Bob Schwemmer.

Manager George Kinzel leads his team to the dugout as Coach Bob Schwemmer gets the helmets ready. In the lower right corner is Bob Sherry, another long-time manager in the Brookline program. Together, Bob Schwemmer, George Kinzel and Bob Sherry each put in 15 or more years with the league and touched the lives of many of us Brookline kids.

The team gathers near the backstop. To the right of the picture, in green shirt, is Walt Evans, another Little League legend, and to his left is retired-President Sam Bryen, affectionately known as the "Father of Little League Baseball" in Brookline. Mr. Bryen and Mr. Evans were two of the founding fathers of the Brookline program, with careers dating back to the 1950s.

Standing near the team with no shirt is "Iron" Mike Healy, and to his left, getting the scorebook straight, is none-other than Gentleman Jack Henry, another long-time coach. Holding the video camera is young Eddy Hurley, and that's Shawn Kelly in the blue football jersey. Propped atop the backstop fencing is the old loud speaker, the same one that had broadcasted the Little League games to the fans of Brookline baseball for more than 30 years.

This last photo is similar to the one above with two notable additions. To the right is League President Angelo Masullo, Sr speaking to the men in the blue ballcaps, and Ed Motznik, who in 1981 would begin an eight year run as the Grand Poobah of the Brookline Little League. During Mr. Motznik's tenure, in 1981, the boys and girls Little Leagues moved into their newly constructed baseball complex, Sam Bryen Fields.

The members of the 1979 Brookline Senior League All-Star team were: Mark Painter, James Manning, Chris Brendel, Steve Tripodi, Mike Joseph, Walt "Rusty" Miller, Robert Matrascia, Mike Healy, James Raimondi, Larry Meyer, Donnie Graham, Robert O'Malley, James "Jake" Zucco and Donald Mooney. Manager: George Kinzel; Coach - Bob Schwemmer.

* Photos provided by Doug Brendel *